Foggy is a soft toy dog on an adventurous quest to raise funds and awareness for The ME Association. His best friend Patch’s favourite human has M.E.
His blog aims to show the human perspective of M.E and to raise awareness of the invisible debilitating illness.

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Sunday, 31 August 2014

Hello!Foggy is travelling to Christchurch, New Zealand and is surrounded by the bubbly loveliness that is first class (jiffy bag). To bide his time Foggy is going to tell you all about Sally's issues with digestive problems.Sally has had problems with reactions to certain foods, bloating and discomfort (to name a few symptoms) her whole life and was usually fobbed off by doctors who just said she had IBS and to get on with it. Last year Sally requested a colonoscopy/endoscopy to rule out anything more sinister as more and more foods were causing a reaction.The colonoscopy found an inflamed area in her colon. Dr's said they couldn't see a cause and said that a lot of people fall into this 'grey area';there is a reaction to something but doctors have no idea why/what. Again, she was sent away and told just to avoid foods that irritate her digestive system. Easier said than done!!The Horizon programme this week in the UK said bacteria in the gut could be linked to allergies; this made sense to Sally as she believes many of her issues come from her gut/digestive system.Hopefully any future research that is funded by this campaign, and others, will help to find out whether there is a link between the gut/digestive system and M.E.Foggy is going to sleep now; this is a LONG flight!Doggy snogs xxx

Saturday, 23 August 2014

Hello!*Foggy* I'm having a lovely time in Turkey with Michele and co; it's lovely to feel warm sunshine on my fur. Sally has told me that this is a working 'holiday' so I've got to do some work too!!Foggy would like to tell you all about the link between Hypermobility Syndrome and M.E. Sally has both....Foggy just thought Sally was bendy!Foggy thinks that Sally is on a huge learning curve with this campaign; she is learning things about her own body as the campaign progresses! Foggy has used all of his doggy memory to put together a timeline of Sally's illnesses since childhood; maybe you will be as baffled as we are about how a lot of NHS doctors haven't linked it all together!Baby years - Tested for Coeliac disease, belly button hernia14-16-undiagnosed illness. Lots of tests....2 years of sporadic school non attendance due to extreme fatigue, feeling fluey, nausea18 - diagnosed with Hypermobility Syndrome - joints had become very painful24 - Generally unwell, skin rashes, swollen tongue, started anti-candida diet27 - Severe reactions to stress started - swollen tongue, heart palpitations, panic attacks -issued with an Epi-pen when reaction very severe.30 - Labyrinthitis ear infection - lasted 6 weeks.......and then 2 weeks later..30 - Start of all sensory migraines and M.E (Although it took 3 years for her to be diagnosed)31 - Allergies and intolerances started.36 - DepressionAll of the above can be found under the umbrella of M.E.Patch has told Foggy that Sally has always been a bit sickly and 'a delicate little flower'. None of us realised that everything could be linked together. So, Sally isn't just raising awareness for others; this campaign is helping her get her head around why she has always been 'not quite right'.Foggy has attached a link for Hypermobility Syndrome. It lists symptoms and causes etc. What it doesn't mention is the crazy spine tingling sensation that is extremely disconcerting and causes Sally to wriggle about when she has been sitting for too long!http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Joint-hypermobility/Pages/Symptoms.aspxSally had physiotherapy when she was 18 to help with the Hypermobility Syndrome. It didn't really help but it did temporarily help with posture etc. At the grand old age of 37 she now sees a Chiropractor who helps to 'reset' her joints. Her neck is particularly mobile and that causes a lot of discomfort.Hope Patch is looking after Sally while Foggy is globetrotting - he thinks she deserves a doggy snuggle.Foggy is off to chill out by the pool!Doggy snogs xxxx

Monday, 18 August 2014

Hello!!!Foggy is a male soft toy dog but he wants to understand EVERYTHING there is to know about M.E. and what symptoms people have. So, today he is going to talk about how hormones affect his lady followers with regards to M.E.He knows that in the week prior to THAT time of the month Sally is like a walking zombie. She say's the blood in her veins feels like lead...making every part of her body feel really heavy and uncomfortable. Just moving around at home is more difficult than usual and everything seems to take 3 times as much energy and effort. Her blood pressure feels like it has dropped to the floor and has constant headaches, a painful weight at the back of her head, slightly blurred vision and heart tremors.The usual M.E. symptoms such as lack of concentration, memory loss, speech difficulties, muscle fatigue, tiredness double during this time. It's got to the stage when in THAT week she can say 'oh that's why!' when she has been wondering why her symptoms were worse the week before.Foggy has a theory. When the body has to cope with something 'extra' like periods, exertion, and stress ,for example, it shuts down in order to cope. The range of functions required to allow a woman to go through THAT week is huge. Every system in the body is affected on a monthly basis.Feedback from Foggy's ladies is welcomed; it would be interesting to see if this issue is a common one or if Sally is a freak of nature!Doggy snogs xxx

Friday, 15 August 2014

Hello!!Foggy has great news! Sally has been working very hard to find additional ways for Foggy Followers to get involved with the campaign. What she has come up with is I (Heart) Foggy T-shirts and Foggy/ME Association badges.Foggy hopes you will buy these items, wear them and help spread the word even further. Please see information below:T-SHIRTS

The above design is available in standard unisex S-5XL and women's style - standard sizes. T-shirts cost £20 each (£4.61 profit going to the ME Association)This campaign is live for 7 days. Future campaigns may include different styles of T-shirt. Please buy your T-shirt via the link below:https://fabrily.com/foggyheart

Contact Fabrily if there are any questions regarding your order as they deal with the manufacture and distribution.BADGESSally's friend Ian has very kindly (he's lovely) donated his services to create a personalised badge for the MEFoggyDog campaign. The brief Sally set him was to make it look like a plaster, to incorporate Foggy's paw print and to highlight the M.E. Association logo. He came up with 9 designs and Sally likes this one the most.One of the horrible things about M.E. is that it is misunderstood because it is an invisible illness. A wise lady in Sally's workplace said it would be easier to understand if M.E. sufferers wore plasters to show they are suffering. So..... that's where the plaster idea came from. We can now wear a plaster for all to see!Initially the idea was to only give them to Foggy-sitters for free as a thank you for Foggy sitting. Sally has now decided that non Foggy-sitters can buy one if they want to have a special keepsake of the campaign. Wear it with pride and start the conversation.The badges are hand engraved and not mass produced; that is reflected in the price. Sally is asking for donations to the JustGiving page (www.justgiving.com/mefoggydog) for £3.60 (inc p&p). Once payment is cleared please then email your delivery address to mefoggydog@gmail.com and Sally will post your badge to you.

The badge is metallic (sorry picture isn't great!- reflection) and is a bronze/gold colour. It measures 4.5 cm x 1.5 cm and has a pin on the reverse.Foggy hopes you like his merchandise as much as he does. Hope to see photos of you wearing your T-shirt/badge really soon! (send any pics to mefoggydog@gmail.com).Doggy snogsxxxxxxxxxxx

Wednesday, 13 August 2014

Hello!!Today Foggy wants to talk about Pacing therapy.When Sally was first diagnosed (it took them 3 years to work out what was wrong!), she was told to 'pace' herself and to think of her energy levels as a battery. She should always try and keep her energy battery half full. ME sufferers never have a full battery even with a 'good' nights sleep and lots of rest, but the main objective of pacing is to make sure your battery doesn't run out of power. Don't rest completely and allow your body to go to sleep but don't exert yourself too much either - tricky!There are no medicines to take for M.E.; Foggy can't understand how so many people are affected with this horrible illness and there are no treatments that don't involve some kind of therapy. Can we have a pill now please?Pacing is incredibly difficult, believe it or not. Common traits of M.E. sufferers are pushing yourself too hard, being a high achiever and perfectionist. Just because you get ill doesn't mean that personality trait turns itself off. Sally has 'mild' M.E. and, even though she knows it is bad for her health, is always pushing herself too hard and wears herself out A LOT! Sally has always been, and will always be, a high achieving perfectionist and sets, sometimes unobtainable, high targets for herself.When Sally is at work she tries to regularly go somewhere quiet just to 'tune out' for a couple of minutes (even if that quiet place is the work bathroom). Just that brief rest time is enough to re-balance her battery and she can carry on for a couple more hours before the next break. Girly shopping can only be done if, every 30 minutes or so, she can sit and rest. Constant sensory stimulation wipes her out very quickly. Unless you are a sufferer you don't appreciate how your senses are affected by the noise, lighting and hustle and bustle of shops. Fortunately Sally has lovely understanding friends who force her to rest when Sally is forcing herself to keep going. She hates admitting she can't cope when she is having a good time with friends! They can usually tell she is reaching her limit by looking at her eyes; they glaze over and look empty.Foggy hopes his M.E. suffering followers aren't allowing their battery to go flat today. Rest and take care.This is an article on the ME Association website about Pacing therapyhttp://www.meassociation.org.uk/2012/05/research-pacing-as-a-strategy-to-improve-energy-management-may-2012/Doggy snogs xxxxx

Sunday, 10 August 2014

Hello!Foggy has been very busy this weekend!Foggy, Sally and Michele G went to Go Skydive in Salisbury so Foggy could fly!He hummed 'Flying Without Wings' throughout the entire journey.....not that he could really be heard from inside his globetrotting travel bag!A lovely lady agreed to take Foggy up with her (see photo) and make his dream come true. Foggy had to do a naked skydive as, wind is 120 mph up in the clouds, there was a risk his collar and tag would fly off!Foggy loved his skydive and wanted to have another go but stopped sulking when we said we were heading to Stonehenge.Here are the photos of his skydiving experience!

Foggy LOVES planes and flying!!!

Our Stonehenge experience was EPIC!! What should have been a quick 10 minute drive turned into an hour long stop start traffic queue. Things got much better when we got to the Visitor Centre though (more queuing, another 45 minutes) but had fantastic fundraising news so Sally and Foggy were happy!). Foggy enjoyed the replica houses and furnishings and LOVED the extra long walkies through fields to get to the site. He had photos taken from all angles and even tried to play dominoes with the stones (see photo). He made friends and had photos taken with a stuffed monkey (sorry, we forgot to take our own photos!).This is definitely a day trip ME sufferers would struggle with. Sally has 'mild' ME and found the walk to and from the site extremely tiring. The alternative bus ride from the Visitor's Centre wasn't a desirable option when the queue was 45 minutes long! Standing in a queue is also tiring! Sally would suggest ME sufferers take this into account if deciding whether to visit. It is a VERY tiring experience.

Dominoes!!!!

Foggy and co had a fabulous, but exhausting, day travelling around Wiltshire. Additional 400 miles have been added to the mile-o-meter in the past 2 days. Foggy has now travelled 2850 miles. he hasn't even left the UK yet!Between now and Mount Kilimanjaro, Foggy has an exciting trip to Cornwall to try surfing and then on to Turkey for a week. The trip to Tanzania and Mount Kilimanjaro is in 23 days time. Please donate and support Cerianne and Foggy with their efforts!Doggy snogs xxx

Friday, 8 August 2014

Hello!Foggy wanted to do something special on Severe ME day and he chose a day out in London. As London is very hectic and noisy it is 100% somewhere ME sufferers feel the full extent of their illness. One of Foggy's campaign objectives is to do things that ME sufferers either find impossible or extremely difficult to do. So this day trip was perfect! The start of the day was TENSE!! Foggy was due to be handed back to Sally after the Jersey trip and then taken by Sally to the train station. Unfortunately the Jersey Foggy sitter was running a little bit late and stress levels were getting a little bit HIGH!! However, Foggy eventually arrived and a mad dash followed to get him to the station on time. 10 minutes to spare!!!Foggy LOVES trains and loved every minute of the 1 hr 45 trip to Waterloo. He wasn't too keen on the underground though; too noisy and hot. Arriving at Tower Hill was lovely....lots of green grass....walkies!!This week also sees the launch of the Tower of London's art installation called 'Blood red Lands and Seas of Red'. See the link for more info http://poppies.hrp.org.uk/ . One of Sally's friends Yvonne O'Connell had volunteered to 'plant' the ceramic poppies as part of an organised group. She took Foggy into the moat to take some photo memories of the day (see below).While Foggy was being dog sat by Yvonne, Jeanette H (Sally's friend) and Sally took a walk along Tower Bridge spreading the M.E. word further - Sally wore her official ME Association t-shirt to promote Severe ME day.The day was exhausting; too hot, stifling, bustling, fast paced, loud and, although it wasn't sunny, it was very bright. Call me Gizmo - remember? Bright light, bright light!! All of these factors are things that affect ME sufferers. Sally usually avoids London like the plague but....this was for Foggy and the poppies. Had to be done :) But now, she is sat in bed trying to engage a brain cell - they all seem to have shrivelled and died tonight! Remember, Foggy is globetrotting to raise funds and awareness for the ME Association. Please donate at www.justgiving.com/mefoggydogHope you like the photo's - doggy snogs xxxxx

Tuesday, 5 August 2014

Hello!I have been away from home since last Thursday. I've missed Patch and Sally a lot but I love my new friend Sharon who looked after me and made sure I had lots of fun!Sharon took me to a place called Vindolanda in the north of England. Sally has posted details of it before in previous blogs so I wont waffle on. I have been loving hanging out with a great bunch of big burly Romans (and lovely ladies :) )It was a blooming long drive 'up north' in horrible rainy weather. I was so eager to get there and get out to stretch my legs...if you know what I mean!

START OF THE ADVENTURE!!!! We're off to see the Roman Army at Vindolanda near Hadrian's Wall!! I can't wait!!

Foggy is trying to take over the navigations. Um...Foggy......you don't know where you are going?!! (and you can't read maps!)

Fields!!!!! I want to go walkies! Are we there yet?

Here at last!!! 7 and a half hours in the car....that's like 10 months in dog years!!!

Ooooh, what are they?? Not seen those before!

What? Look behind me?

I'm puckering up for a doggy snog!

I must be a REALLY good kisser...he wants one too!!!!

Mad, bad Tungrian!! (big softie really :) Doggy snogs xxx)

I PROMISE I did not break these!!!

Tablet weaving....maybe if I sit here long enough she will roll some up and make a ball for me to play with.

I may be tiny but I bet I can get across to that rock without getting wet...

It's a hard life being THIS cute!

This scary looking man is the Vexillarius. he carries the banner of the legion. ROOOAAAAARRRRRRRRR